Afghanistan Peace CampaignTuesday’s order also announced that acting Deputy Interior Minister Mullah Mohammad Mohsin would be appointed to run the northern province of Panjshir.
The Islamic Emirate’s supreme leader issued an order on Tuesday announcing a reshuffle of several national and provincial positions, including replacing the acting education minister.
Islamic Emirate spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid released the list of changes, saying they were by order of the Islamic Emirate’s supreme leader Haibatullah Akhundzada, who is based in Kandahar, the southern province.
Makhdom Alam was appointed commander of the security department of Ghazni province, according to the decree.
Makhdom Alam is a famous commander of the Islamic Emirate in northern Afghanistan. Earlier, he had been arrested on charges of kidnapping but was released after being in detention for around one month.
“Based on the decree of the (supreme leader), the reshuffling took place and this is a usual procedure in government. This happened to improve activities,” said Bilal Karimi, deputy spokesman for the Islamic Emirate.
“The people wish for fundamental reforms in the government. For example, the changes in the Education Ministry pave the ground for the immediate reopening of girls’ schools. Also, the changes in other departments of the government happened based on the people’s wishes,” said Najibullah Jami, a political analyst.
The newly appointed Education Minister, Mawlawi Habibullah Agha, is said to be one of the closest figures to the supreme leader of the Islamic Emirate, Mawlawi Hebatullah Akhundzada.
The education ministry initially said all schools would open in March, but secondary schools for girls have mostly stayed shut.
The Islamic Emirate now say they are working on a plan to open secondary schools for girls but have not given a specific timeframe.
Islamic Emirate and diplomatic sources told Reuters that last week several ministers had gathered in Kandahar for a cabinet meeting led by the supreme leader. The Taliban’s information ministry did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request to confirm the cabinet meeting had taken place.
Tuesday’s order also announced that acting Deputy Interior Minister Mullah Mohammad Mohsin would be appointed to run the northern province of Panjshir, replacing a provincial governor who would be reassigned as governor of eastern Logar province.
Resistance groups have said they have been carrying out operations in the Panjshir and clashing with Islamic fighters.
The Islamic Emirate said last week they had killed 40 fighters of the Resistance Front, including four commanders, in Panjshir. However, the Islamic Emirate has denied widespread fighting, saying it has established control of the entire country.